1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to barbed wire and, more particularly, to providing protective coverings for the barbs on barbed wire.
2. Statement of the Problem
Barbed wire has been utilized for over a century to keep livestock, particularly cattle, within a parcel of land or to prevent animals and livestock from coming onto a parcel of land. A fence conventionally constructed of barbed wire usually has fence posts spaced from eight to twelve feet apart carrying three to five strands of barbed wire. The barbed wire has positioned at predetermined distances sharp and pointed barbs. Barbed wire and barbed wire fences function exceptionally well to contain livestock or to keep livestock out from parcels of land.
Many parcels of land undergo a change in the character of use from containing animals such as livestock to containing animals such as horses where the use of barbed wire is dangerous. It is well known that horses, especially if chased by dogs or spooked, can crash into barbed wire and severely lacerate their skin and perhaps permanently disable the horse which may result in the horse being put down. Barbed wire damage to horses, especially to expensive race, show, and performance horses is well known. A n e e d, therefore, exists to permit the full utilization of existing barbed wire fences to contain horses without risking laceration and other damage to the horse.
Smooth strand wire without barbs is typically used to confine horses on parcels of land. Many horse owners, upon purchasing parcels of land with barbed wire go to great expense to have the barbed wire removed and the smooth wire installed. It is expensive to remove barbed wire and it is expensive to reinstall smooth wire.
One problem with smooth wire is its invisibility or transparency to the horse. Many horse owners will affix pieces of cloth to the smooth wire or place a board or pipe across the top of the fence to provide the needed visibility. A need also exists to provide visibility for barbed wire fences.
3. Solution to the Problems
The present invention provides a solution to the above problem in a number of different embodiments. The present invention provides a protective, colored covering for each barb in a barbed wire strand. The protective covering fully covers each barb thereby rendering the sharp point ineffective. In one embodiment, the present invention provides a simple, plastic snap-on sphere that fully covers the barb. The sphere is designed to permanently snap-on and to withstand the environmental extremes a fence is subjected to.
In a second embodiment, the present invention provides an approach for forming a substantially spherical shape of material onto each barb so as to fully envelope the barb.
Under each embodiment, the protective covering can be composed of material in a variety of colors, even fluorescent colors, so as to provide substantial visibility for the fence. In a typical operation, the top barbed wire strand in a fence could utilize the colored protective coverings and the lower strands could use coverings of transparent material so as not to make the overall fence unacceptable to view.
The protective barbed coverings of the present invention are designed to be inexpensive, to be quickly installed onto barbs of existing barbed wire fences and to provide durability in the face of extreme environmental conditions.